TMJ Friends

I thought before I launched into writing articles and fully running the message board, I should explain where I have been for the past year, and what brought me back.

For those of you who don’t know me, or my story, I had bilateral TMJ replacements about two years ago.  About one year after the surgery, I decided to move back to my favorite city in the world: San Francicso.  When I moved, I was under the impression that I might be able to put some of TMJ disorder behind me.  I had closed the TMJ Friends message board because it was just too much to handle for one person, and started out west.

After the initial excitement of a new beginning wore off, I found myself isolated.  I also realized how much it helped me to set aside my issues and help other people.  I never knew how much I would miss the support and community that was established with TMJ Friends.

Have you ever said to someone, “I have a really bad headache,” and their response was to tell you about how their headache was so much worse.. and then the conversation ends there?   You might get a response like that on a support board, but it doesn’t end there.  It always opens a dialog and prompts feedback from other people.  I didn’t have many people to get feedback from, and certainly not anyone who really understood.  Not that I blame them - how could they understand when they didn’t really know me?

San Francisco was a learning and growing experience.  No one likes pain - we all want to try and change our situations and the circumstances that caused them.  However, a new location doesn’t change anything!  All you can change is the way you feel or deal with your circumstances.  These things are much easier to handle when you are surrounded by people who love and support you.

I think Dorothy from Wizard of Oz said it best: “If I ever go looking for my heart’s desire again, I won’t look any further than my own back yard.  Because if it isn’t there, I never really lost it to begin with!”